CORRESPONDENCE - 85A - Laserfiche WebLink

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Orozco, Norma From:Iliana Carolina Zepeda <zepedai@uci.edu> Sent:Thursday, June 18, 2020 3:55 PM To:eComment Subject:Item 85A - We need Police Oversight Commission It is time for us to keep police accountable. I hope that you all can listen to the people of Santa Ana because we told you clearly what we need from you as our representatives. I hope that today you will let us share our opinions. I am writing in deep concern for the health of Santa Ana community. It has become more than clear that a radical shift in our concept of policing and community health must take place at the local level. It is unacceptable that Black, Indigenous, and People of Color communities are living in persistent fear of being killed by state authorities like police, immigration agents or even white vigilantes who are emboldened by state actors. Despite continued profiling, harassment, terror and killing of Black communities, local and federal decision-makers continue to invest in the police, which leaves Black people vulnerable and our communities no safer. Moreover, this deep lack of trust that the government is breeding by terrorizing its own people, rather than safeguarding our health, is an alarming risk for future generations to live peacefully and safely with each other. While police funding has increased every single year, we somehow have to be more conservative on funding for public health and community resources. Shame on you for prioritizing the oppression of the people. Santa Ana Police is the 8th most violent department in the U.S., and Anaheim is the 9th. This is not what Orange County, CA stands for. From 2003-2016, Anaheim Police Department killed 33 people during the process of arrest, and nearly 40% of them were unarmed. Since 2014, the rate of arrest- related deaths caused by Anaheim PD exceeds that of LAPD, NYPD, and San Fran PD and is 74% higher than average for police in California. How can it be that agents funded for “public protection” are responsible for 17% of all homicides in the city (2003-2016)? In the years 2009 and 2016, 36% of all homicides were in the hands of Anaheim officers. Frankly, this is unacceptable. It is inhumane and impossible to ignore as an issue anymore. Rather, our city needs a radical increase in funding towards community services and healthcare. We need youth programs, increased mental health services, neighborhood infrastructures, childcare, and community outreach for those who need these services most. We need more funds for rehabilitation and the re-entry process for formerly incarcerated individuals, and to help increase employment and education rates. Orange County needs to build a society that does not need the level of policing. I call for the strengthening of the education and health of our community of Santa Ana. In Community, 1